His Aim Was Bad but Then, So Was His Intention

Stan Williams, the new pitching coach of the Seattle Mariners, had a reputation for meanness as a Dodger pitcher from 1958 to 1962.

Ron Fairly, the Mariners’ broadcaster and a former Dodger, recalled this exchange after a pitch from Williams hit Henry Aaron on the batting helmet:

Williams: “Hank, I’m sorry I hit you in the helmet.”

Aaron: “Don’t worry about it. Those things happen.”

Williams: “No, you don’t understand. I was trying to hit you in the neck.”

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Trivia time: In the Dodgers’ first season in Los Angeles, 1958, who were their only two players named to the National League All-Star team?

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Like a movie: Michael Wilbon in the Washington Post: “You can find better basketball than the New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat. Anywhere. If it’s artistry you want, this isn’t the series.

“What we’ve got here is thick drama, story lines, subplots, undercurrents, hype, XXL egos, attitude aplenty and (unfortunately) the threat of violence.”

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Observation: Blackie Sherrod in the Dallas Morning News: “Idle Thought: If the NFL banned collegians with police records, there might be no draft. And probably no league.”

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Fancy writing: Don Bostrom in the Allentown Morning Call: “ ‘Casey At The Bat’ came to life in the Philadelphia Phillies’ 9-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals Sunday.

“The 27,917 who braved threatening skies and bitter cold were treated to a classic series of confrontations between Phillie ace Curt Schilling, baseball’s reigning strikeout king and Keeper of the Fireball, and St. Louis strongboy Mark McGwire, Master of the Longball Universe.

“This High Noon showdown was as basic as it gets. It was raw power vs. brute strength, a volatile mix dating back to the caveman era.

“It was Raw Power 3, Brute Strength 0 as Schilling blew McGwire away three times to extend his rule over the Big Bopper, who is 0 for eight with six strikeouts thus far in these meetings.”

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A realist: Arizona Diamondback pitcher Andy Benes already has hit a home run, a double and a single this season, but is not expecting the first triple that would complete the cycle:

“The only way I would get it is if the center fielder and right fielder collided and both went down and the left fielder had to run over to get it. I’d have a better chance of winning the lottery without a ticket.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1966, Boston defeated the Lakers, 95-93, in Game 7 of the NBA championship series, giving the Celtics and Coach Red Auerbach their eighth title.

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Trivia answer: Pitcher Johnny Podres and catcher John Roseboro. The Dodgers finished seventh in the eight-team National League in 1958.

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And finally: Jayson Williams, commenting on the New Jersey Nets being 1,000-1 underdogs at the start of their playoff series with the Chicago Bulls:

“I’m sure there’s more than one of every 1,000 who think we can win this. We’ve got 12 or 13 guys in this room. That knocks it down to 988-1.”

With the Nets trailing in the series, 2-0, it might be 2,000-1 now for the third game Wednesday in New Jersey.